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Community Development Agency <br />www.santa-ana.org/community-development <br />Item # 16 <br />City of Santa Ana <br />20 Civic Center Plaza, Santa Ana, CA 92701 <br /> Staff Report <br />February 17, 2026 <br />TOPIC: Ordinance Prohibiting Anti-Competitive Automated Rent Price-Fixing <br />AGENDA TITLE <br />Ordinance Prohibiting Anti-Competitive Automated Rent Price-Fixing <br />RECOMMENDED ACTION <br />Adopt an ordinance of the City Council prohibiting anti-competitive automated rent price <br />fixing software. <br />ORDINANCE NO. NS-XXXX entitled AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF <br />THE CITY OF SANTA ANA PROHIBITING ANTI-COMPETITIVE AUTOMATED RENT <br />PRICE FIXING <br />GOVERNMENT CODE §84308 APPLIES: No <br />DISCUSSION <br />The use of algorithmic devices to set rental rates in the private rental market has <br />contributed to the nationwide housing affordability crisis. These tools utilize nonpublic <br />competitor data, including real time rents, lease renewals, and occupancy levels to <br />generate coordinated pricing recommendations that inflate rental rates beyond <br />competitive market levels. National analyses and federal lawsuits suggest that such tools <br />may contribute to double-digit rent increases, increased rates of eviction, and artificial <br />housing scarcity. The purpose of this ordinance is therefore to protect renters in the City <br />of Santa Ana (City) from artificially inflated rents and unfair rent-setting practices. <br />The City’s renters are subjected to the affordability pressures created by these algorithmic <br />devices. According to the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2023 5-Year American Community <br />Survey (ACS), the City has 79,691 occupied housing units, of which 44,151 are renter- <br />occupied households accounting for over 55% of the total occupied housing units. <br />Approximately 53% of these households are considered cost-burdened with housing <br />expenses exceeding 30% of overall household income. The City’s median household <br />income has not kept pace with the growth in rental housing costs, placing disproportionate <br />pressure on low-income and working-class families. The City’s review of current rental <br />market conditions, together with findings from federal investigations and national <br />research, indicates that algorithmic rent setting tools pose a risk to housing affordability <br />in Santa Ana. In a 2024 study by the White House, it was reported that renters nationally